''Fat City'' is not an upper. But in John Huston's hands, this 1972 movie catches the seedy bonhomie of the low-level boxing world. There are no champs here, just guys like the old has-been Billy Tully (Stacy Keach), who tells the young never-will-be, Ernie (Jeff Bridges), ''There was a time when nobody could hit me.'' (Yes, Billy may remind you of the ''I-coulda-been-a-contender'' character played by Marlon Brando in ''On the Waterfront.'') The story is not the thing in this adaptation by Leonard Gardner from his tough but thin novel. What holds us are the no-nonsense scenes at the gym, in the bars, on the fields where the down-and-almost-out boxers line up for jobs as onion pickers for 20 cents a sack. Nothing exactly inspiring happens to either fighter. Ernie manages to lose two fights out of two. Billy hooks up briefly with an affectionate ''juicehead'' (Susan Tyrrell), but it can't last. For Billy, nothing lasts.

The ring lingo is sharp; Mr. Keach and Mr. Bridges are convincing, and Nicholas Colasanto turns in a particularly punchy job as their honest fight manager. Billy's climactic and exhausting fight against another old pro is shot with power and sympathy for all over-the-hill battlers. A knockout scene by that grand old battler, John Huston.

We are continually improving the quality of our text archives. Please send feedback, error reports,
and suggestions to archive_feedback@nytimes.com.

A version of this review appears in print on May 1, 1988, on Page 2002030 of the National edition with the headline: HOME VIDEO/NEW RELEASES; Punchy. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe